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Wachowskis top WB’s list of potential ‘Justice League’ directors

It's rare that an "in development" project garners as much attention as the much-talked-about "Justice League" movie, but the Warner Bros. film's already storied journey to the big screen is becoming more intriguing by the day. After all, the movie involves Batman, Superman, and the rest of the DC Comics gang. That many superheroes in one place is bound to turn heads.

Earlier this month, actor/director Ben Affleck ("Argo") was rumoured to be in the running to helm the superhero ensemble, but those rumours were quickly thrown into doubt by numerous outlets. Affleck may well have been approached by Warner Bros. to tackle the big budget superhero project, but in an interview with 24 Hours Vancouver, the director and star of "The Town" was ambigious.

"I'm not working on the "Justice League," said Affleck. "One of the problems with entertainment web sites is that they need to fill pages, and that's how rumours get started."

An outright dismissal or just carefully chosen words? Saying that he's not currently working on "Justice League" isn't the same as saying he's not going to be working on it in the future. Affleck went on to describe the project as "really exciting," so let the Internet speculation continue!

So, Affleck may or may not still be in the running for "Justice League," but who else might WB be looking at for their answer to Marvel's "Avengers"? Moviehole.net reports that a certain sibling directing duo with long running ties to the studio may be at the top of that list. According to their alleged source at WB, Andy and Lana Wachowski (the "Matrix" trilogy, "Speed Racer") are leading the "Justice League" pack. This is most likely thanks to their work on the upcoming "Cloud Atlas," a century-spanning sci-fi epic with a huge ensemble cast and a ridiculous visual effects budget. A huge cast of characters and massive CGI spectacle? That sounds exactly like a "Justice League" movie.

It wouldn't be the Wachowskis' first foray into the comic book world, either. The duo wrote and produced the film adaptation of the graphic novel "V for Vendetta," and it can easily be argued that "The Matrix" was basically a superhero story in cyberpunk clothing.

Whomever Warner Bros. chooses to take on the DC Comics superteam has got their work cut out for them. Both Affleck and the Wachowskis would be pretty solid bets, but WB may decide to go in another direction entirely. But it doesn't end with the director, because it's still an uphill battle for the movie. The whole project rides on the success of Zack Snyder's "Man of Steel" (which is being produced by "Dark Knight" director Christopher Nolan) due out next year, and whether the "Green Lantern" sequel (if it ever actually happens) works.

"Wonder Woman" and "Aquaman" movies would help lay the groundwork for a "Justice League" team-up, but even the studio knows that standalone films featuring those characters are not safe bets. Hey, nobody said making superhero movies was easy.